What Do You Want From Me?
by DreamForever03
Summary: Troy's dad dies and the team gets a new coach. He's incrediblly nice to the team, but not Troy. There's something that ties him and Troy together but what is it? And why is it that this guy has the same last name as Troy Bolton? Cowrite with Stessa
1. Gone

**Author's Note: **Hey guys! This is lilcutie0918 and Stessa here with a new story! We hope you like it! Please review and let us know what you think!

**What Do You Want From Me? **

**Summary: **Troy's dad dies and the team gets a new coach. He's incrediblly nice to the team, but not Troy. There's something that ties him and Troy together but what is it? And why is it that this guy has the same last name as Troy Bolton? Warnings: child abuse Cowrite with Stessa

**Disclaimer:** We do not own hsm.

**Chapter One: Gone**

Troy Bolton was your typical high school boy. He was the basketball star. He was popular, and known by the entire student body. He had a beautiful girlfriend, who was smart and sweet. He had a great family, with a mom and a dad. He had everything a typical guy would have.

And he loved his life. There was not a thing he would change about it. Well, maybe except for the whole school thing. He didn't enjoy school that much, not like his girlfriend, but he went, because he had to, and because he wanted to hang out with his friends and whoever else he might meet.

And this was like any regular day for him. He was sitting in a boring French class, staring into space. Their teacher, an old woman named Mrs. White, who spoke French with a thick accent, because she had lived there for several years, was going on about verbs and the ways to inflect them, but Troy didn't pay attention. A few of the "geeks" were writing down on their papers furiously, but he didn't care. He was too lazy to even take his books up. It was a wonder he was able to maintain his grades.

Troy turned his gaze to the side, and stared out the window, getting lost in the clear blue sky. It had been a great day so far. And he couldn't wait until basketball practise. His father was coming to school only to practise with them next period. He didn't have any PE classes today, so it was only for basketball. During free period, and then after school as well.

His eyes snapped back to Mrs. White as she gave them a text to read and analyze. He took the piece of paper, and stared blankly down at the words. He really wasn't in the mood for this. It'd ruin his awesome day. But unfortunately he had to do it. That was the thing with school. If you didn't do anything, you'd get send down to the office, or get a whole bunch of work to do at home. He really didn't want to stay up all night to do French, so he better get started to now.

He didn't get to work long though, because just then Principle Matsui's voice came through the system;

"_Can I please see Troy Bolton to office immediately?_"

Troy looked confused for a second, as whispers started going through the class.

"What's up, dude?" Jason asked, whispering quietly, not to be caught, but it didn't really matter, because everyone else was talking and whispering too.

"I dunno…" Troy muttered, and quickly started to gather his stuff together, trying not to disturb the class as he went. But he shouldn't care, because even though Mrs. White was giving them all hard glares, they kept talking.

"Yo Troy?!" someone shouted, from behind him, "What have you done?"

Troy shook his head, but else ignored the fool. He then grabbed his bag, and looked at Mrs. White, who gave him a disapproving look, even though it wasn't possibly his fault. He hadn't done anything to get himself into the trouble, so it had to be Principle Matsui who wanted to see him about something important.

He hurried out of the classroom and down the hall, the whispering following him.

"Wow, Troy Bolton at the office…"

"I wonder what's up?"

"Do you know anything?"

"No, I don't. Do you…"

"I can't even think of a thing he could have done… He's like the _perfect_ student."

"Weird."

He closed the door behind himself, cutting their voices off as well. Then he hurried down the hall, still thinking things over in his head. He couldn't figure out what was up. Was it good news? Had he done something great for the school? Was it about the Champion Chips? Or did something happen…

It didn't take him very long to arrive at the office, so he stopped outside, taking a calming breath. He felt nervous, and he was worried now. It couldn't be good, he was sure of it. He suddenly had a very bad feeling in the pit of his stomach. He closed his eyes, and leaned his head against the wall for a second, enjoying the piece and quiet while it lasted. He didn't know why, but he had a feeling that hell was about to break loose for him.

When he had calmed himself a bit, he grabbed the handle to the door, and entered the secretary's office. He shot her a smile, and was about to say something, but she cut him off,

"Principle Matsui is waiting for you right now. You can go right in."

And he nodded, while receiving a sad smile from the old lady. He crossed the room, and gently knocked on the wooden door, his heart beating faster and faster.

"Come in."

It was his que, so he opened the door and stepped inside. He paused for a second, and took in his surroundings. He'd only been in the office once before, when Principle Matsui wanted to praise him for a great team, and it looked the same. Except for one thing… It wasn't a happy smile that met him. It was a rather sad one.

"Take a seat," Principle Matsui said, gesturing towards the chair in front of him.

Troy almost threw his bag at the floor, and took a seat, curiously peeking at the Principle. He wanted to know what was up; he almost couldn't wait to find out. Even if the news were bad, he had to know. He couldn't stand not knowing. He had always been curious, and he was sure he'd be it until he died.

"Troy, I don't exactly know how to say this…"

Okay, now Troy changed his mind. He didn't want to find out what happened…No…okay…he did, but he was scared at what was going to come out of Mr. Matsui's mouth.

"Troy, I'm terribly sorry…but your father passed away today."

Troy's world came crumbling down at that instant. It felt as though he were hyperventilating. He couldn't breathe…couldn't hear Mr. Matsui telling him to calm down… Many thoughts were running through his mind.

What were they going to do? 'They' meaning him and his mom. How were they going to survive? They couldn't afford anything on their own. He was going to have to get two jobs…quit school, something. How could his father just leave like that? Troy didn't understand. His father was meant to be there for him. He was meant to help him with his basketball career. Show him all the ropes in life…

"Troy, Troy honey, mom is here. I'm going to need you to calm down," a voice echoed in his ear, but he could barely hear it. Nothing was getting through to him. It was as if he had closed off the world. Like he was in some kind of trance…

"He's not responding, why isn't he responding?" the same voice sobbed, it was still faint.

"I don't know Mrs. Bolton. Maybe he went into some kind of shock."

"How do we get him out of it?? Troy, Troy? TROY!"

He felt something shaking him…his head was falling from side to side but he couldn't seem to get to whoever was shaking him.

"Mrs. Bolton!"

"I'm sorry! But he won't respond…Troy's it's your mother. Come on honey, snap out of it."

Water was suddenly covering Troy's body. He screamed, and jumped out of the chair, the water dripping onto the floor; shaking uncontrollably.

Arms embraced him; Troy stiffened but then found that they belonged to his mother. He fell against her. The water soaking her, but she didn't care. All she cared about right now was her baby boy.

"Troy I'm sorry but you weren't talking or responding to anything! You were in some kind of trance."

He turned to her, tears now forming into his eyes.

"Mom…" He didn't even have to say anything. Mrs. Bolton tightened her hold on him and the two held on to each other as if their lives depended on it.

"It's gonna be okay…" Mrs. Bolton promised, as she hugged her son tight, "It's gonna be okay, we'll figure something out, Troy."

"But how can it be okay when dad is gone?" Troy asked, looking deeply into her eyes. He didn't really want to cry, because he knew he had to stay strong for her. Her husband was gone.

"We'll figure something out, Troy." She repeated, as she pulled away from him, turning to look at Principal Matsui, "Is it okay if Troy goes home for the rest of the day?" she questioned.

Principal Matsui could do nothing but nod, "Of course, we'll see him when he's ready."

The two Boltons went for the door, "Thank you," Mrs. Bolton then replied, before opening it.

"Once again, I am so sorry!" Principal Matsui added, before they stood in the secretary's office. They didn't even speak to her, they just crossed the room, and came out in the hallway. It was empty, because the students were still in class.

"It's gonna be okay, Troy!" his mother promised, hugging him tightly again, now that they were alone, "It's okay to cry. You need to get it out."

Troy couldn't help but let the tears fall, when she hugged him tighter. He couldn't really comprehend the thought. His father was really gone, he was… He was dead. They wouldn't see him again. He'd never get back. It was scary to think about it. What were they gonna do?

"How did he die?" Troy whispered, as he still had his head buried in his mother's chest.

"It was a car crash." His mother responded, "The police is investigating it, because something seemed to be wrong with the car. The motor suddenly just.. blew up, or something."

Troy's lips trembled, and he cried again. His father died while he was on his way to get to school. He was coming to practice with his team, the thing he loved the most, and he died. It was a horrible thought. And why was something wrong with the motor, his father always knew how to fix his car properly! He wouldn't have made a mistake with it!

"Let's get home, okay Troy?" Mrs. Bolton asked, brushing a piece of his hair out of his eyes, "Let's get home. There's no use staying here, all right? It's not gonna help either of us."

Troy nodded lightly, and pulled away from his mom, placing an arm around her. As he turned to go for the door, his eyes caught Sharpay's… What was she doing there? Why wasn't she in class?

He lowered his gaze, and led his mom out of the school, while Sharpay just watched them leave, a curious, yet worried look in her eyes.


	2. The Brother

**What Do You Want From Me?**

**Disclaimer: We do not own hsm. **

**Chapter 2: The brother**

The car ride home was an awkward, silent one. No one talked, uttered a word. Troy's mom would continue to look over at him, worry in her eyes. Troy would just continue to stare out the window, watching colors among colors fly by. Not paying attention to a single thing.

His mind had shut down…gone numb. He couldn't feel anything. It was as if all emotion had been ripped out of him. Heart torn…

"Troy, do you want something to eat?"

His mouth was moving, but he couldn't seem to hear what he was saying. It was moving without him knowing. He didn't even hear her respond back.

Troy couldn't even remember getting out of the car when they arrived home, or his mother calling him as he walked upstairs and into his room, shutting the door quietly.

Sitting on his bed, didn't even register in his brain nor did the part where he fell asleep…

---------------

Waking up, Troy felt completely refreshed. As if he had slept for ages! He felt as though he could do anything! But since there wasn't really anything _to _do, he decided to go play some basketball, maybe with his dad. If he wasn't busy that is.

Walking out of his room, he called his dad, expecting him to answer, but since he didn't, he went to go ask his mom where he was.

Walking into the kitchen, Troy saw his mom at the table with a phone attached to her ear. Troy walked up to her, grinning. Mrs. Bolton however, had not heard him coming up.

"Mom!"

Mrs. Bolton jumped, almost dropping the phone. She quickly wiped her eyes and turned to him with a fake, bright smile. But, once she saw him smiling right back at her, she grew confused…

"Troy?"

"Sorry about that, but have you seen Dad? I want him to help me practice."

Mrs. Bolton's face completely fell apart. Tears formed in her eyes and rushed down her cheeks once she realized what was going on. She grabbed Troy's hand; he looked completely confused/worried. Wondering why his mother was acting this way.

"Mom?" he questioned looking into her eyes.

"Troy…you seemed to have forgotten and I really don't know how to say this."

Now Troy was really worried. What was she talking about? Had something happened? Was dad in trouble?

"Say what? Mom, what are you talking about?"

Her grip tightened around his hand and she took a deep breath.

"Troy, I'm sorry, but your father h-he died…today…"

What? No, no, no, no. She was lying! She had to be! He had just seen him this morning! It wasn't true! He wrenched his hand out of hers, shaking his head. He started walking backwards, angry tears in his eyes, but not falling.

He pointed at her, "No, you're lying. You're lying…cruel…no…"

He was muttering strange things like that as he ran out of the room, crazily searching for his dad. He had to be here somewhere! Troy knew he was, he could feel it, he just knew it!

"Dad?" He shouted, running from room to room. He could hear his mother crying, yelling his name but he ignored her. She was lying! Playing some cruel trick on him! He knew it!

His world was spinning as he continuously turned his head, looking, searching…hoping…

"Upstairs, has to be upstairs," his mind concluded as he ran up the stairs, his mother trying to catch up to him, but failing miserably.

He searched all of the rooms, before finally coming to a stop at his parents' room. This was the last place that his dad would be. If he wasn't in there then…

Troy breathed heavily, tears mixing in with sweat. He wrapped his hand around the doorknob, turning it slowly. He could hear his mother walking up to him, but he didn't turn to her. He stared at the door determined.

He twisted it…slowly pushed it open but then stopped as a hand clamped his shoulder. He already knew who it was.

"He's in there mom, I know he is. You're lying…"

Mrs. Bolton took a deep breath, "No he's not-" before she could finish, Troy had hastily turned around, and slapped her. The slap echoing through out the hallway.

"He's in there!" Troy argued, staring angrily at her, his blue eyes lightening.

Mrs. Bolton held her cheek, tears cascading down her cheeks, while she just looked at him, nodding her head silently to the door. Troy shot her another glare, before he turned around and slowly pushed the door all the way open.

His heart caught in his throat, as he took in the empty room before him. His dad wasn't there… He wasn't sleeping or working… That meant he was-

He turned around, as the tears welled up in his eyes, and everything came crashing back. Before he knew what was going on, he wrapped his arms around his mother, and cried his eyes out, his mother softly brushing his hair, and telling him it would be okay.

--

Sharpay studied the brunette from across the room, taking in her smiley face, and her cheery voice as she spoke to her best friends. Obviously, she hadn't heard about Troy going home crying yesterday, because then she wouldn't be that happy, would she? She was his girlfriend, she wasn't supposed to be happy if he was sad. But she was supposed to know when something was up, so maybe she did?

Troy hadn't come to school, and Sharpay was really worried. She wasn't sure if anyone really knew something was up, but she knew, and she wanted to figure out if Troy was okay. She hated that she had the need to check up on him, but she couldn't help herself. She just… She liked him so much, she couldn't stand to see him sad. Even if he didn't return her affections.

She crossed the room, and everybody got quiet, as soon as she was in earshot. They all looked at her, like she was some maniac, because she wasn't the person they'd expected to show up.

She awkwardly cleared her throat, "Where's Troy?" she asked them, an eyebrow raised.

"I dunno…" Chad replied, shrugging slightly, "I think he's sick. I texted him 5 minutes ago, but he hasn't answered. If he's sick, he's probably asleep."

"Are you sure something isn't up?" Sharpay asked them, swallowing – in her opinion – too loudly.

"Why would something be up?" Gabriella asked, shooting her a hard glare, "…do you know something we don't?"

Sharpay shrugged her shoulders helplessly, "It's just…" she trailed off, not knowing if she should say anything, but deciding to do it. If something was up, they'd want to know, so they could help Troy, "I saw him and his mom here… yesterday." She swallowed again, "And they were crying; then they left."

Taylor arched an eyebrow, "Crying, you say?"

"Yeah," Sharpay nodded.

"Coach wasn't at practice either." Chad butted in, looking confused, "I'll just call him after homeroom. If something happened, they'd have told us, right..?"

"Maybe they will?" Sharpay just mumbled, as she went back to her desk, because the bell rang. If something had happened, Mrs. Darbus would tell them the minute she stepped in the door.

And it was right that minute. The old Drama teacher, returned to her stage in the small classroom, and shot them all a sad smile, "…I have something to tell you." She begun.

--

Troy and his Mrs. Bolton were looking at old pictures, scattered around the living room floor. Troy was lying on the couch, head poking out, to study all the pictures on the floor beneath him, while his mother was snuggled in a blanket, sitting on the floor, in the middle of everything.

There were pictures of Troy's first years, to his first basketball game, and first day at school. There were birthdays, Christmases and First Julys. It held so many memories, and Troy wondered how a picture could do that. Just looking at his father's smiling face, made his insides crumple, and his heart beat faster. It was weird to think that he wouldn't be back.

There'd be no more… No more basketball games, Christmases, birthdays and Fourth of Julys. No more Halloweens, no more _anything_! Nothing. It was all gone, and he couldn't comprehend that. His father wasn't coming back.

The doorbell rang, and Mrs. Bolton got out of her blanket and went into the hallway to open up to whoever was outside. Troy just listened to the muffled voices, not quite sure who the other person was, except for the fact that it was a man.

His mother came back into the living room, the guest following. Troy got up to greet him, and had to study his face hard for a couple of seconds before realizing who it was.

"Uncle Robert!" he exclaimed, and rushed into his uncle's open arms. It felt good to have him wrap his arms around him, Troy could feel himself getting calmer. There was something so strong about him, and he reminded Troy so much of his father. They were bothers, so of course.

"Hey, are you okay?" Robert asked, as they pulled away from each other. He looked Troy deeply in the eyes, and then hugged him again, "I left as soon as I got the message from your mom. I'm so sorry, Troy. I know it must be hard. I'll be here for you as long as you need."

Troy pulled back, and couldn't help but get a smile on his face, "You mean you're staying here!"

"For as long as you need…" Robert promised again, finally letting go of his nephew. He turned to look at Mrs. Bolton, and hugged her too, "How are you feeling Lisa?"

"I'm so shocked…" Lisa whispered, hugging him tight, "Thank you for coming, Robert…"

"It's gonna be okay," Robert promised, pulling away from her as well, "We'll work everything out, okay? I'll help you with everything. I'll stand as long as you guys need it."

"You really don't have to, uncle Rob!" Troy said, sitting down on the couch again.

"You guys are family," uncle Robert said, smiling at them both, "And the Boltons have always helped family. So I'll help you."

They both shot him another smile, to show him how much they appreciated his help, just as the doorbell rang, yet again.

--

Gabriella hammered her finger onto the doorbell, sighing loudly. She couldn't believe he hadn't told her. One thing was that he just took home from school yesterday, but that he hadn't told her his father was in a car crash… She thought he loved her! If he loved her that much, why hadn't he told her? That she'd had to hear from Sharpay that he left school… That was just right down humiliating.

And now the blonde girl was right there next to her, because she _insisted _to know about Troy's well-being too. She wanted to make sure he was alright, just as Gabriella herself did.

So the two of them had decided to stop by. She really hoped Troy was okay. She wanted him to be, but Mrs. Darbus had been very upset about this. It had come as quite a shock to everyone, and the Wildcats had been very sad… They'd just lost their coach, and their team captain lost his father.

She rang the doorbell yet again, and Sharpay groaned beside her, "I know he's home…" she muttered, "He has got to be."

Sharpay just nodded, as the door finally opened, and Troy stood there before them, looking utterly confused.

"Hi?" he questioned.

"Troy!" Gabriella whined, and almost jumped onto him, hugging him tight, "Mrs. Darbus told us! I'm so, so, so, soooo sorry! Are you okay? Why didn't you tell me?"

"Well, I was just…" Troy trailed off and locked eyes with Sharpay for a second, "Hey Sharpay."

"Hi…" she whispered, as she passed the hugging couple, and walked into the living room, hugging the 'forest' tightly in her hands. Gabriella was going on about something again, and Troy barely got to say a word.

Sharpay saw Mrs. Bolton talking to some man, so she awkwardly cleared her throat.

"Hi?" Mrs. Bolton questioned, standing up the greet her guest.

"Hi.." Sharpay mumbled, holding out the flowers she had so neatly picked out, and paid for, "I heard about your husband, I'm so sorry."

Mrs. Bolton took the flowers, and looked at them, mustering a smile, "Thank you. It came as a great shock to us."

"I can imagine." Sharpay replied, offering her a cheery smile.

"So, you're Sharpay, right?" Mrs. Bolton asked, studying her, "Sharpay Evans? The girl from Lava Springs?"

"Yes." Sharpay said, nodding her head, "It's me. I've changed though, I'm not quite as… desperate."

Mrs. Bolton couldn't help but chuckle, "Well that's good. You can call me Lisa, by the way."

Sharpay nodded, as her eyes turned to the man in the room.

"Oh!" Lisa said, as she realized she hadn't introduced her brother-in-law yet, "This is Robert Bolton. He's Jacks' brother. He's gonna stay here for awhile."

"Nice to meet you." Robert said.

Sharpay just nodded, and turned around to leave. She didn't know why, but she didn't get a very good vibe from that guy. He seemed… weird. He didn't seem like Jack Bolton at all. He wasn't quite as happy, and cheery. Sharpay had always loved to judge people, and never once before in her life, had she been wrong about someone.

"Bye!" Lisa yelled, and Sharpay turned around to wave. When she came into the hallway again, she saw Gabriella and Troy, sitting on the stairwell.

"…right now, Gabriella." Troy said, placing a hand on her knee, "Thanks for the concern, but right now I just need to get used to it all."

"Are you sure?" Gabriella pressed, arching her eyebrow.

"I'm very sure." Troy said, and then he looked up, and caught Sharpay's eye, "Hey Sharpay? What are you doing here?"

"I came to condole your mother." Sharpay replied, going for the front door, "I gave her some flowers."

"Oh…" Troy said, feeling a bit disappointed that she didn't come to condole _him,_ "Well that's great. Thanks."

"When are you coming back to school?" Gabriella then wanted to know, "I missed you today!"

"I don't know, Gabriella…" Troy sighed, shaking his head, "It'll probably be awhile. Until after the funeral, maybe."

"I'll be there." Sharpay butted in, sensing that he wanted to get some piece from Gabriella's questions, "And I'll make sure to get all our homework assignments as well. Don't worry about it."

Troy couldn't help but smile at her friendliness. It didn't seem like her, "Thanks."

"I'm going now, Gabriella," Sharpay said, as she turned to the brunette girl, "So if you want to catch a ride, it's now."

Gabriella nodded, and planted a wet, sloppy kiss on Troy's cheek, "Bye Troy!"

"Bye," Troy said, as he tried to brush his cheek off, without Gabriella noticing. He succeeded.

Gabriella went out first, and Sharpay and Troy's eyes locked once again, before she closed the door.

**Author's Note: **Hey guys, we'd just like to thank everyone who reviewed. You guys are awesome! We hope you enjoyed this chapter. Sorry for any mistakes. Review?


	3. Gabriella or Sharpay?

**What Do You ****Want From Me?**

**Disclaimer: We do not own hsm. **

**Chapter 3: Gabriella or Sharpay? **

_I don't understand what's going on. I'm so confused_, Gabriella thought to herself, _Troy was acting so weird yesterday when I was with him. Sure, Sharpay was there, and it may have made him feel a bit weird… but he shouldn't have talked to me that way. _

She knew his father just died, but he should not have shut her out. She was here to help him. She is his girlfriend, and she'll always be there for him.

_No matter what happens, I'll stand by his side. I thought he knew that. But if he did, then why did he act that way?_ She kept on thinking.

Gabriella went to school today, but she wasn't really into it. For the first time in all her life, her thoughts were elsewhere during. All she wanted to do was go visit Troy. He was her life. She loved him with all her heart, and hated that he was hurting. She felt like she should be there with him. Shouldn't she?

The minute the last bell rang, Gabriella hurried out of school and down the street. Troy didn't live that far from school, so she was there pretty fast. She knocked on the door, and it was Mrs. Bolton who answered.

Mrs. Bolton greeted Gabriella with a sad smile. "Hi Gabriella. Did you have a nice day at school?"

"Yeah," Gabriella replied, blinking weirdly. She looked like she hadn't slept in ages. And really, it was only two days ago that it happened. Who knew how important sleep could be for a person? "Is Troy here?" she questioned, looking pass Mrs. Bolton, and into the house.

"Yes," she said, and opened the door all the way to let Gabriella through. "He's in the living room with his uncle. I'll just go get him."

Gabriella nodded, and watched as she retired to the living room. She was slumping as she walked. Who could blame her, really? Her husband was dead. Gabriella's own mother had looked far worse when her husband died. She had been a total mess.

Troy came into the hallway a couple of minutes later and Gabriella wrapped her arms around him. Hugging him close, she buried her nose in his neck. He smelled so nice. She could feel him patting her back awkwardly, so she pulled back. She shot him a smile.

"Are you alright?" Gabriella questioned as she studied his face hard. He looked tired too. And he didn't look happy. _Well, obviously._

"I'm okay," he replied, as he grabbed her hand tightly, and turned to the staircase, "Let's go upstairs to my room. We can talk there."

Gabriella nodded, and they walked up the stairs in silence. She could hear the quiet talking of his mother and uncle in the living room, but she couldn't hear their conversation. Troy was oddly stiff as he walked and held her hand, but she decided not to comment on it.

They sat down on his bed, her hand still clasped in his strong one. Gabriella just looked at him for awhile, waiting for him to say something. But he looked back at her, without really looking. His gaze was hollow, and it kind of scared her.

"Troy?" she whispered, stroking the back of his hand lightly.

"Yeah?" he whispered. His voice was broken and raw, and it actually made Gabriella shiver. He sounded a bit spooky.

"Do you need to talk about this?" Gabriella asked him with a sigh. "Do you need to get it out? Do you need to cry? It's okay to cry, Troy. I'm here for you. Talk to me about it."

He shook his head, and turned it away from her, not wanting to meet her eyes.

"Troy?" Gabriella spoke quietly, "I need you to understand this. If you don't get it out, it'll bottle up inside of you, and that's not good. You need to talk about your emotions…"

Again, he just didn't answer, but he met her eyes. His blue ones digging deeply into the depths of her own.

"Troy?" she tried again, and she could hear that her own voice was close to begging. She didn't care, she loved him. "Please…" she whispered, "Talk to me. I love you so much. I hate seeing you like this."

He closed his eyes for a second, and let out a deep sigh, "Gabriella…" he said, as he opened his eyes again, to lock them with hers. "I can't… I can't talk about this right now. I have too much going on, and it hasn't quite settled. It's too hard for me to even think about it. Don't ask me to say it out loud. Please don't ask me to do that."

Gabriella stared at him for a second or two, as she thought his words over. She didn't understand him. What was he going on about? The best way to get through all this was to talk about it. Why couldn't he see that? She had done nothing but talk about it when her father died. So yeah. She was gonna _make_ him talk. She couldn't see him like this.

"Listen Troy," she said, as she kept on going, "I know how you feel. I've been there, okay? My dad… when he died, I was only nine years old, and it hurt so much. But I talked with my friends about it, and I saw a shrink. Maybe you should see a shrink, too! It helps so much, and I want to make you feel better. It helped me Troy, it really did…"

He jerked his hand away from her grip and stood up, walking to his door, and opening it. He looked at her. His eyes were still haunted, though they had a glassy look, because he was fighting back tears. "I need you to leave now, Gabriella."

She stood up, confused. "What?"

"You need to leave. I can't talk to you right now, not when you keep on pressuring me," he said as he swallowed, "So please leave. We'll talk soon."

Gabriella didn't want to leave. She opened her mouth to protest. He shook his head and pointed down the hallway. She bent her head down, let out a sigh, and left. Like he couldn't talk to her, she couldn't talk to him. Not when he didn't want to listen to her. She was only trying to help, but he couldn't understand that.

And it hurt her that he didn't want to listen to her and take her advice. It really hurt her.

--

Robert watched as the sad teenage girl walked out of the house and down the street. Lisa was in the kitchen, fixing something for them to eat. Now might be his moment with Troy. He needed to speak with the boy. It was important to maintain a good relationship with each other. He needed to talk to him about Jack.

He made his way up the stairs, and gently knocked on Troy's bedroom door. He knew he would be in there. He was always in his room.

"Yeah?"

Robert gently opened the door, and peeked inside, a shy smile on his face. "Hey Troy… I saw your friend just leave. Is everything all right?"

"It's fine," Troy replied, and motioned for his uncle to come all the way into the room.

Robert did, and he closed the door behind him, before sitting down on the bed. Troy was in the chair by his desk. He swung around to face him.

"How are you feeling, Troy?" Robert asked, staring into the blue of Troy's eyes.

"I'm all right." Troy shrugged. He didn't want to seem weak in front of his uncle. It wasn't very manly. He didn't even want to cry in front of his girlfriend, how could he cry in front of a man?

"Are you sure?" Robert asked, as he leaned back, to rest himself against the wall. "I mean, it is good to talk about your father. It'll make you feel better. Your mother and I already talked a lot about him. It eases the pain."

"I guess but I don't know…"

"It will help, trust me. Me and your mother just talked about him. Like what he loved, and what he spent his time on." Robert replied. He was studying Troy's ceiling with great interest. "I talked a lot about our childhood together."

"Oh, yeah?" Troy asked, getting interested, "I've never really heard about his childhood. He didn't want to talk much about it. And about you. We've actually never spent time together that much."

"We've both been busy, which I now regret." Robert replied.

_Yeah right. As if. Busy? No way. The guy just couldn't stand me! Just like I can't stand you. _

"Yeah, it's sad when families break apart." Troy replied, his face dropping. "So how was your childhood? Did you guys spend a lot of time together? There's only two years between the two of you. You guys must have been the best of friends."

_No not at all, it was horrible._

"Yes," Robert said, smiling. "We were very good friends. We skipped school to go and play football. I loved your father, and he loved me."

_No, he didn't. He hated you. You know it, Robert. He hated you, and he trampled all over you! _

_Which is why I'm here now…_

"Ah, I wish I had a brother." Troy simply said, "I mean… It could be a sister too, but a brother would be preferred. We could be as close as you guys were."

"Sure, it'd be great." Robert smiled, _except he'd despise you Troy. Wouldn't want to hang out with you. He wouldn't want you to have all the good things in life, because he wanted to be the best._

"Yeah…" It grew awkward; Troy started to spin around while Robert just rolled his eyes at him. Troy didn't see that.

"So…what happened between you and your friend?"

Troy stopped spinning and shrugged. Robert could see that he didn't want to talk about it, but he didn't care.

"Nothing…we just had a bit of a fight is all…."

Robert nodded. "Oh, about what?"

Troy looked uncomfortable, "Uh, just everything that's been going on."

"Ah, I see…"

"Yeah."

"Is she your girlfriend?"

"Yeah."

_Perfect, _Robert thought, putting his hands together.

The doorbell rang just then, causing both of them to turn towards the bedroom door.

Robert got up and stretched, "Guess I'll go answer it."

He left without waiting to hear a response from Troy and headed down the stairs.

When he answered the door, the girl that came by yesterday was standing there…what was her name? Sharpie…Sharp-sharp something…Sharpa, Sharpo, Sharpay! That's it.

She smiled at him, "Hi Mr. Bolton. Is Troy around? I wanted to check up on him. Make sure everything is all right."

_Who was this girl anyway? His other girlfriend? Wow, he's a lot like Jack. A womanizer. _

Robert faked a grin, "Yeah. Come on in. Troy's upstairs in his room."

"Thanks."

Sharpay stepped inside; Robert shut the door after her and waited as she walked up to Troy's room.

Once she was there, he turned and headed for the kitchen, wondering if Lisa was still in there. He needed to put his plan into action, and he needed to do it quick.

**Author's note: Hey guys! Hoped you liked that chapter! Thank you so much for all of the reviews! We love you all! Keep at it kay? **


	4. The Funeral

**What Do You Want From Me?**

**Disclaimer: We do not own hsm. **

**Chapter Four: The Funeral **

Sharpay gently knocked on Troy's door, hoping he'd want to speak to her. She was kinda worried about him. She didn't know why but she just didn't get a very good vibe from Robert. She felt like he couldn't be trusted, but she didn't want to speak her confusion to Troy. It'd just hurt him even more if she started to accuse his uncle.

Troy didn't answer, and she didn't want to stay there forever, she slowly pressed down the knob, and pushed the door open. She peeked inside and saw Troy lying on his bed, face towards the wall. She stepped inside. He hadn't heard her, and if he had, he didn't acknowledge her presence. She closed the door behind her- not wanting to be interrupted, and walked across the floor.

She looked at his face and realized he was sleeping, his face- as he turned his head a bit- had tearstains on it. Sharpay felt…well she didn't exactly know what to feel. She just felt so bad for Troy. It must have been so horrible when he found out about his dad. Sharpay couldn't even imagine.

Suddenly, his eyes were fluttering, like a butterfly's wings.

She hated to wake him, but she knew she had to. She wanted to speak with him, and she hadn't gone all this way over here for nothing! She was worried about his well-being, and she just wanted to make sure her was okay.

She reached out and gently touched his arm, shaking him lightly. He groaned, and turned around, his eyes snapping open so she could stare into his ocean blue eyes. He seemed surprised to see her for a second, but when he realized what was happening, he sat up in bed, and rubbed his eyes.

"Sharpay?" he questioned, his voice broken and raw, "What are you doing here? How did you get in?"

Sharpay swallowed, and took a seat next to him on the bed, "Your uncle let me in. I wanted to check up on you. How are you holding up?"

He bit his lip, not knowing hot to respond to that. He didn't want to be rude, and tell her to leave, but he also just wanted to be left alone for awhile. He was tired of everyone asking him how he was holding up. It was very sweet of her to care like that, but he was getting so sick of it! …he just wanted space.

"Troy?" she kept on, gently touching his arm, "You wanna talk about it?"

He closed his eyes, and leaned back against the wall, exhaling loudly, "No." he replied, kind of harshly, hoping she might get a bit offended and then leave him alone. He could always apologize some other time.

"You know I'm here for you right?" she continued, as she stroked his arm gently, "…they miss you at school." She continued, oblivious to the fact that Troy didn't want to listen to her, "PE and basketball practice has been cancelled. They haven't got another coach yet. It's so weird without you there and without your dad of course."

"Mmmhmm…" he mumbled, biting his lip lightly.

"But I started talking more to Chad." She told him, as she leaned against the wall, her head next to his, "He's really sad about this. I feel so bad for him. Of course it's not his dad, but y'know, your father always treated him as a son. So I sorta consoled him today. He started crying."

"He did?" Troy managed to choke out, now concerned for his best buddy. He had no idea Chad could even cry! The boy had never cried before, not even when he got hurt. But stranger things had happened, of course… Like Troy starring in a musicale, so maybe it was true?

"Yeah, I was so weirded out about it." Sharpay replied with a sigh, "We want you back soon. Are you coming after the funeral?"

"…"

"Troy?" she questioned, turning her head to the side, to look at him. She found his eyes closed, and silent tears running down his cheeks. Maybe mentioning the funeral wasn't the brightest thing she had ever done. She rushed off the bed, and stopped in the middle of the room, "I'm gonna go, Troy. I'm sorry I mentioned that, I was-" she cut herself off, and opened the door, "We'll talk soon. I miss you."

Troy didn't even nod, but breathed out a deep sigh, when the door closed. He just wanted to be left alone right now. Alone with his thoughts, and alone with his feelings. He needed to sort all this out himself. He really needed space.

Sharpay leaned herself against the door, once it was closed softly. Maybe she was annoying him by coming all the time? But she just wanted good things for him! She just wanted to help! Of course it was hard on him, when his father had just died, so maybe he needed more time? She could be bothering him more than she knew.

She gathered herself together, and silently made her way down the stairs again. She didn't want to bother anyone. Mrs. Bolton was probably just as hurt as Troy, and she was probably with Robert right now. But Sharpay still felt like she needed to talk to her… She'd feel guilty if she went home without showing her condolence again. Her mother had taught her well – that was what a real lady did, she'd said, since Sharpay was just a kid.

She peeked into the living room, but no one was there. She went towards the kitchen but stopped by the doorframe when she found the two grown-ups embraced in a huge. She peeked inside and was sorta confused by what she saw. They seemed awfully close to each other… Mrs. Bolton was just crying, but Robert was like… squeezing the living life out of her.

Something didn't seem quite right about that picture, and that nagging feeling about Robert came up in Sharpay's stomach again. Something was definitely up with that guy.

--

Troy was a bit happier when Chad showed up in his backyard the same evening, basketball in hand. Troy was sitting in the grass, just looking around the lane, remembering all the things he'd done with his father in there. It was painful to even think about him, he realized.

But when Chad stood there, he shot out of his seat, and enveloped him in a big hug, not needing to speak any words. He was surprised, how much he'd actually missed his best bud during these few days. Chad awkwardly let go of the orange ball, and hugged Troy back. He could feel his friend needed it – and frankly, he needed it too. He was so worked up about everything. He couldn't really believe that Jack Bolton was gone.

"Hey man!" Chad mumbled. Awkwardly, they pulled apart, "How're you holding up, dude? I know it's not well, but getting better?"

Troy shrugged his shoulders and dug his hands deeply into the pockets of his sweatpants, "Yeah, I'm-" he paused, "I'm holding up, all right. It's kinda weird not having him around, y'know? But I'm getting used to it."

"Well, that's good..." Chad replied. He didn't know what to say at all, but it was great just seeing Troy. What did you say in situations like this anyway? It's kinda stupid to start talking about his father, and it's hard figuring out what else to say, when the death is all you can think about. But it definitely eased his mind to see Troy in person after the accident.

"It's okay, I suppose." Troy said, and managed to shoot Chad a grin, "You wanna go inside? We might have some leftovers to eat," he suggested, knowing it'd be great to do something regular. He and Chad had always eaten the dinner left-over at the most unnatural times- at like, three o'clock in the morning when they couldn't sleep. So maybe it would make them both feel better, if they did stuff like that?

Chad shrugged his shoulders, "Nah, I just wanted to check on you. I have to go home again. Mom says I can't intrude for too long at this time. Would've been fun, though."

"It's okay," Troy said, not really disappointed. It would have been awkward to sit there in silence, too.

"I'm just gonna run again, alright?" Chad said, as he backed away from him, "I'll see you around?"

"See ya'." Troy replied, as Chad turned around, and ran out of the backyard. Troy just watched him go, a feeling he couldn't quite describe, eating him up from the inside. He didn't know what to do any longer. It was hard…

It was so hard.

--

The funeral arrived faster then Troy expected. The day seemed to fit the mood everyone was feeling- well mostly everyone anyway: dreary and cold. The wind was blowing fiercely as Troy stood, robotically greeting everyone as they arrived.

Once everyone showed up, Troy and his mother finally took a seat, which was next to Gabriella and her family in the front row. Gabriella immediately took Troy's hand in hers, for support. Troy would have smiled at her but for some reason…he just couldn't. His emotions were threatening to take over. His vision was going blurry with tears and his heart seemed to ache. It felt as though there was a hole in his heart. One that couldn't ever be repaired.

Troy slowly looked up. The priest was at the podium now, gathering everyone's attention.

He cleared his throat, "We are gathered here today because of a great tragedy-"

Suddenly, Troy couldn't hear what the priest was saying. He could only hear all of the people that were crying. His mother next to him was crying her eyes out, trying to hug him. But he couldn't feel her hugging him. He could vaguely hear some of the things the priest was saying, but they weren't exactly registering.

"_He was a great man, father, coach,"_

Troy looked towards Gabriella, she was crying, embracing her mom.

Tears threatened to fall as Troy continued to listen to everything that was going on. The crying…the priest talking. He was trying to stay strong. He didn't need his mother to see him crying. He didn't need anyone to see him crying damnit!

But he couldn't seem to hold it in any longer. The tears started to fall and Troy turned towards his mother and embraced her.

He couldn't seem to fight it any longer.

------

When the funeral ended, Robert Bolton couldn't be happier. All of the crying was getting annoying and listening to the fucking priest go on and on about how great his brother was and blah, blah, blah. Robert was glad to get out of there. Though now he was here at the house where all of the family and friends came to.

He walked around, bored out of his mind. Troy had gone outside with all of his friends. Robert knew he couldn't start his plan now. Waaay too soon. He'd have to wait a few days or so to start it. He didn't want to be suspicious. Lisa had gone into the kitchen with one of her good friends so Robert couldn't really talk to her either.

Suddenly, Robert came up to a group of men talking. They seemed to be talking about his brother, which immediately sparked Robert's curiousness. He stood a few feet away and casually listened into their conversation.

"I don't know what we are going to do without Jack. Now we have no coach for the team or gym..."

"I'm sure you'll be able find somebody."

"Yeah, I guess so..."

It grew quiet and Robert took this as his chance to speak up, to finally put his plan into action.

"Hey guys, I couldn't help but overhear…that you needed a new coach?"

* * *

**Author's note: Hey guys, sorry for the delay! We hope you all are having a wonderful holiday. Merry almost Christmas to those who celebrate it! **

** review please? It'll make us verrry happy **

**-lilcutie0918 and stessa **


	5. Coach Bolton?

**What Do You Want From Me  
**

**Disclaimer: We do not own hsm **

**Chapter Five: Coach Bolton  
**

Troy had made his decision. He was gonna get up today, and he was gonna go to school, like it was any other day. Sure, it wasn't. A lot had changed, and he couldn't deny that, but... He needed to move on. He needed to get on with his life. His father was buried, and he wasn't coming back. Troy knew his dad wouldn't want him to sulk around forever. He was gonna move on, and he was gonna be strong about it.

His mother had been bothering him for days about getting off of his butt, and start anew. He kept brushing her off at first, telling her to leave him alone, because he didn't want to go back there; he didn't want to see their sorry faces, and have Gabriella on his back all day long, with her bad advises. He didn't want to see Sharpay in the eye, after the way he treated her the other day, and then he'd ignored her at the funeral too. He kinda wanted to see Chad again, since his friend knew how to take his mind off of stuff.

So he'd finally decided to it, and was now sitting in his car, watching the double doors to East High School. He really wanted to turn around now, but he couldn't be a wimp. He had to do it someday, and people were starting to stare at the car (without wanting him to notice they were staring), and it was looking rather stupid.

He took in a deep breath, and opened the car door. He got out of the car, grabbed his backpack, and smacked the door behind him. He made his way across the parking lot, and up the path, before entering the building. Everyone he passed on his way, watching him curiously. He shrugged all the looks off, and proceeded to his locker, getting every each of his books out, so he didn't have to go back there and give them all an opportunity to watch him with their hungry eyes.

Before he managed to get to homeroom, Sharpay had grabbed half of his books, to ease his load, and was walking beside him. Her high heels were clicking against the floor, but he didn't say anything, and he didn't tell her to leave. He didn't really mind her company, because she wasn't just _watching_. She wasn't acting as if he had some evil disease. She was just there, giving him someone to walk by, so he didn't feel so alone. And he didn't want to upset her; he still felt bad about what happened last time.

She plumped his books onto his desk, and he placed the ones he was carrying himself, on top of those. He quickly sat down, glad that no one else had arrived yet, since he was going in there quite early. Sharpay stood before him, leaning herself against his huge pile of books.

"Hi." She smiled, shooting him that cute smile she held. He hadn't really noticed it before, when she was still a bitch, but after she seemed to care so much for him and his well-being. He started to notice all those cute things she did, and had.

"Hi." He replied, and locked eyes with her.

She swallowed, "It's nice to have you back at school, Troy. Maybe things will start to get more normal. I really hope they will. The team has been… lost."

He nodded, not really knowing what to reply. She was so wise at times. She just… spoke. She told him about stuff. She didn't talk much about his father, or how he was anymore, she just told him about everything that was going on; everything happening there. How the others were doing.

"Gabriella really missed you." she continued, "Of course we missed you too, but she… well, she's Gabriella, so she was very worked up about it."

"I gotta speak to her." Troy said, with a sigh, "I've missed her, I really need to see everyone again."

Sharpay opened her mouth to reply, but then Chad, Taylor and Gabriella burst into the classroom, before she managed to get a sound out. Chad shot her a look, but didn't say anything; Taylor did though.

"Sharpay, hey…" she said, "What are you doing?" she questioned, probably suspicious about Sharpay's intentions or something. Taylor never was easy to trick – not that Sharpay was trying to trick anyone.

"I was just talking to Troy…" Sharpay replied, but by her face, she took a step back, "I'll just go now.." she waved at Troy, before leaving the classroom, to let them be.

"Troy!" Gabriella broke the silence, and wrapped her arms around him, "How are you? Are you doing better? I haven't heard from you since the funeral."

"I just needed space, Gab.." Troy told her, and tried to get her off of him, without hurting her feelings – it worked, "But I'm back now; ready to move on."

"That's great!" Chad said, and jumped onto a desk, to sit down, "We can get the team up and about again, we've really needed you. The new Coach is great as well."

"Cool," Troy replied, not wanting to hear more about a 'new' Coach.

"…not that he's as great as your father, of course." Chad quickly added, not wanting to upset Troy, by mentioning his father – that was kinda harsh right now. He didn't know how sensitive Troy was about his father, still. It could have gotten a lot better, but he couldn't know if it had.

"I know, Chad.." Troy said, resisting to roll his eyes, "It's alright to mention him, you know. We need to go on, and a new Coach is cool. Maybe he can teach us new things."

"Yeah, the thing is, it's just your-"

Chad was cut off by Jason and Zeke, who both rushed into the classroom, and padded Troy on the arms.

"Hey dude!" Zeke exclaimed, shooting him a huge grin, "What's up? Feeling better?"

"Yeah, totally." Troy smiled, and hit Jason lightly across the arm, all buddy-buddy.

"Great, dude." Jason smiled, "We really need to work on the team-play."

"I'm here after school; ready to practice." Troy smiled.

Just then the first bell rang, and people started streaming into the classroom. Gabriella kissed his cheek, and hugged him tightly, before she had to go back to her seat. Troy saw Sharpay come into the classroom, above her shoulder, and winked at her.

She smiled back, and gave him thumbs-up. He didn't know why, but he felt like he was getting to know the so-called Ice Princess better. And she wasn't that icy. She was pretty sweet, and pretty caring…

And he absolutely started to care for her.

--

"TROY!" a voice known as Chad yelled, making Troy come to a halt and others to turn their heads.

He turned and gave a small grin, "Hey man."

Chad gave him a pat on the shoulder, "Ready for practice dude?"

Troy shrugged…he had actually been dreading it. Just the thought of being coached by a different coach that wasn't his dad just didn't sound appealing to him at all.

"Uh, yeah."

"Cool," Chad said, lapsing into silence. He had a feeling that Troy really didn't want to go into this subject so he laid off and decided to start a new one.

"So, how are things with Gabriella?"

Troy shrugged again, "All right. Not much really happening."

"Well dude! Make something happen then!" Chad grinned and winked at him.

Troy shook his head, hitting Chad on the shoulder, "Not what I meant man."

Chad laughed, "Yeah I know. Just trying to lighten up the mood."

Troy gave him a tiny smile, "Well thanks I guess. But uh, how are things with you and Taylor?"

Chad smiled even wider, if that was possible, "Great! I got a date with her this Friday. Can't wait!"

"Awesome dude, what are you guys doing?"

Chad shrugged, "Going to see some chick flick movie. I forget which one though…"

Troy laughed, "Smooth."

"Oh well. I don't think we'll even be watching the movie, if you know what I mean," he nudged Troy.

Troy shook his head, "Wow dude, just wow."

Chad raised his eyebrow, "What?"

"Nothing."

Chad just shrugged and the two grew quiet again. It wasn't long before they finally made it to the locker room. When they stepped in, the rest of the team immediately greeted them, well Troy mostly. Slapping him on the back and giving him high fives.

"Hey guys!"

"Troy! Welcome back!"

Troy grinned, "Thanks guys. How've you been?"

Jason put a hand on Troy's shoulder, "Naw dude, the question is: How have _you _been?"

Troy looked away and shrugged, "Oh, uh, I've been good…" He felt completely awkward now.

"Guys, back off of Troy. He _just _got here. Now go get dressed. We have practice we need to attend to!" Zeke yelled, trying to get Troy out of an uncomfortable position. He could tell he was uncomfortable just by the look on his face. Everyone else clearly did not see it. Zeke however, did.

Troy looked over at him gratefully and Zeke nodded at him, smiling.

"Fine, fine Zeke. Sheesh, keep your panties on," Chad said, patting Zeke on the back.

Zeke just shook his head at him and walked away, everyone else followed suite.

Troy took out his clothes out of his locker and got dressed. Chad did the same and the two walked out together, towards the gym.

"So, uh who's the new coach this year?" Troy asked, though he really didn't want to know. Just being here was hard enough on him. Painful memories threatened to overtake him but he forced them out of his mind. He couldn't break down in front of Chad. That would be humiliating, horrible.

He tried keeping his mind focused on other things. Things that didn't involve his dad, which was rather hard because the memory of him, was everywhere in this school. Troy focused ahead of them; Chad opened the gym doors and said:

"His name is Coach Bolton, dude I've been meaning to ask you, are you related to a Robert Bolton? Cause I found it quite odd that he had the same last name as you."

Troy gasped and his eyes grew wide, "Are you kidding me? My uncle is the new coach?"

Chad nodded, though he was shocked too, "He's your uncle?? Wicked cool man. He's awesome."

"Wicked cool? Wow, I'm guessing new word in your vocabulary?" Troy asked, nudging Chad lightly.

Chad laughed, "Hah, yeah I guess. But dude, it's so cool you're related to him. The guy is way nice."

Troy laughed, "Sounds like you developed a man crush on him Chad."

Chad looked offended, "I have not! I just like the guy okay."

Troy shook his head, "Whatever man. I can't believe my uncle is coaching. I didn't even know he liked basketball."

Chad chuckled, the two of them walked over to the bleachers, where a few of the other guys were, talking.

"Well I guess he does. He _is _coaching after all."

"Yeah. I seem to find new things I didn't know about him everyday. It's crazy."

Chad laughed, "Yeah. Oh! I forgot to tell you!"

"What?" Troy asked, curious.

"Gabriella told me to tell you, to meet her at your secret spot or something after practice. Apparently she had to stay after school for something and yeah."

Troy nodded, "Oh. Okay. Cool."

Troy and Chad sat down on the bleachers. It wasn't long before the other team-mates showed up and everyone stood up, waiting for the coach, aka Robert.

"Troy! Dude, are you related to Coach Bolton? Cause he had the same last name as you," Jason asked, coming up to them. The rest of the team was curious too and turned to them, wanting to hear what Troy had to say.

"Yeah Jason, we already established that. Duh," Chad said, cutting Troy off, "he's Troy's uncle!"

Jason raised his eyebrow at him, "Oooh, established, big word Chad. Good job."

Chad rolled his eyes and shoved Jason, "Shut up dude. I do know somethings you know."

Jason shook his head, "Yeah, yeah, so Troy, he's your uncle? That's pretty cool."

"Yeah, I had no idea he was coaching the team, I guess that explains all the time he's not at home."

Everyone laughed, but then the double doors flew open and in cam Robert Bolton himself, smiling.

"Hey guys! How's it going? Ready for practice?"

"YEAH!" everyone screamed.

Troy came forward and said, "Uncle Robert, I didn't know you were coaching the team!"

Troy moved to give Robert a 'manly' hug though he was shoved away, "Yeah, yeah. It's Coach Bolton to you Bolton. Now everyone ten suicides and then uh, a practice game or something."

Troy had to keep his balance from falling to the floor. He shrugged at Chad, who was giving him a strange look. Troy felt confused at the way Robert was acting but shrugged it off, not really giving it any thought.

The team started the suicides. They went back and forth, touching the ground before starting back up again. Troy felt his muscles strengthen and beads of sweat pouring down his face. He felt like he was back to his normal self. Or close enough.

"Bolton, you're going too slow! Go faster!" His uncle yelled, causing Troy to knit his eyebrows in confusion. He was on his sixth suicide, a few other guys were on their fourth or fifth. He thought he was going fast enough. But, taking his uncle's advice, he worked to move faster.

"Not fast enough Bolton! I swear, am I going to have to give you more suicides?"

Even the rest of the team thought Robert was being a bit harsh. Troy was going faster then all of them. They knew he was moving up to his eighth suicide now. What was going on?

Chad threw Troy a worried look as they passed each other. Chad was on his sixth suicide. He didn't understand what the coach was talking about. Troy was definitely going fast enough! Hell, he looked like he was about to pass out!

Coach Bolton shook his head at Troy. Honestly, he was such an embarrassment. Why did he have to have such a horrible nephew? One that was just like Jack? One that succeeded in almost everything he tried at? Robert was determined, to break Troy down. To show him what it's like to finally be at the bottom.

"Okay_Troy_, ten more suicides! God you're embarrassing," Robert whispered the last part out loud, however, Zeke who just happened to run by him, heard him. He raised his eyebrow at the coach and shook his head. He didn't have a clue as to what was going on. How could Troy possibly be an embarrassment?

Troy, stopped this time, completely outraged, he was going faster damn it! What more did the _coach _want from him?

"What? But Coach, I was going faster! How much faster do you want me to go?" He yelled.

Robert raised his eyebrow at him. So the kid decided to talk back? Now Robert was really pissed.

"Do you want me to move it to fifteen suicides? Because I seriously can, if you keeping going on like this."

"But Coach, he was running faster! He was ahead of us by like two suicides!" Chad yelled, trying to defend his friend. He didn't know what the coach's problem was, all of a sudden. He wasn't like this at all before Troy was here. He was completely nice and friendly. Chad just didn't get it and neither did the rest of the team.

"Okay, fine, fine. No suicides. Let's just start the game."

------

Practice felt like it was going on forever, to Troy. He was glad when it was finally over and he was about to head into the locker room. Unfortunately, Troy heard his name being called and knew that it was his uncle. He wanted to ignore him, but knew that wouldn't be such a good idea. Troy didn't know what was going on with his uncle. He had completely humiliated Troy all through out practice. The rather unfortunate thing was that Troy had to see him at home.

Chad gave him a sympathetic look as Troy bid him goodbye and headed back into the gym where his uncle stood, arms folded, scowl upon his face. Least to say, he did not look happy.

"Troy, what was going on with you today? You were completely off," Robert said, lying through his teeth. He was getting quite good at this.

"What are you talking about? I thought I was doing good!" he said, clearly not understanding his uncle at all.

"See, there you go with that whole 'I'm better then everyone else' crap. You know Troy, that's really not appealing."

Troy shook his head; not believing what he was hearing because totally wasn't what he meant at all. He knew he wasn't better then everyone else. He seriously just thought he was doing good.

"No, that's not what I meant at all. I-"

Robert put his hands up, shaking his head.

"Look, I really don't want to discuss this here, let's talk about it at home. Go get dressed then after that we're leaving."

It was then that Troy remembered Gabriella, he was meant to be meeting her.

"Actually, I was going to be meeting my girlfriend after practice…"

Robert nodded, deciding to let Troy go see his girlfriend. He didn't want to completely be a bastard to Troy yet. That would be later.

"Okay, well don't be home too late."

Troy raised his eyebrow at his uncle's sudden mood change. He really couldn't keep up with him.

"Okay. I'm gonna go change. Bye."

Troy got out of there, as fast as possible.

----

"Dude, what was up with you and your uncle?" Chad asked the minute Troy was in the locker room.

Troy shrugged, not knowing himself, "I have no idea. I think he's PMSing or something."

Chad laughed, "Okay yeah, let's go with that."

The two laughed again, though as Troy changed out of his clothes, he still couldn't help but wonder, what was up with his uncle. He definitely wasn't acting like himself and that kind of…worried Troy.

* * *

** Review please? **


	6. On My Own Time

**What Do You Want From Me? **

**Disclaimer: We do not own HSM **

**Chapter Six: On My Own Time **

Troy made his way towards the rooftop, down the hallway, after his uncle let him go. He didn't know what was up with Robert right now – he was acting so weird. He wasn't acting like he did all the other days at home, around Troy's mom. Troy didn't get that. It made him feel… Feel all weird on the inside. He didn't know what was up with his uncle now, and it worried him.

What if Jack dying had hit Robert harder than they thought? What if he had just held on strong because he wanted to be there for Troy and his mom? What if he really… What if he was really hurt and broken on the inside, and now he was getting all his frustrations out?

_Though that still shouldn't be reason for him to react this way_, Troy mused to himself, as he took the stairs, two steps at a time, getting closer to Gabriella each second. He decided that he shouldn't think about Robert. He should forget about his dead father, and his uncle for a few hours, and just spend time with Gabriella. She deserved he gave her some time. He hadn't acted very good towards her since his dad died. He ought to apologise and then just… make it up to her. And he did kinda miss her. It had been too long.

He got there before Gabriella, he realized. She was probably busy doing some science with the Scholastic Decathlon Team. He really loved that about her. She was so smart, but she still didn't come of in a-know-it-all kinda way. She was just really, really cleaver, and he adored that.

He sat down on the bench, and leaned back, letting the faint sunlight hit his face, warming him. This was the life. He realized, he had been needing this. Some time to relax. Just some time to himself, mainly. Why hadn't he thought of that before? Sure, he was glad everyone wanted to make sure he was fine. They all just wanted to take care of him, but it became too much sometimes. This was so nice. Just him and his thoughts.

He smiled when he remembered this morning. How Sharpay had been all nice to him, and then the gang had arrived and ruined it. Now, he knew he didn't know her that well, but she was different than he'd thought – than they'd thought. Maybe if the gang gave her a chance, they could see how wonderful she was as well? She really had been great talking to him. She'd been so considerate. And really, he believed he might find a wonderful friend in her. And when she wasn't bitchy, she was easy to get on board with.

"Hey."

He opened his eyes, and came face to face with the beautiful smile of his girlfriend. He really did care about her. Love would probably be too strong a word for him, but he didn't know what he'd do without her right now. It would do him good; spending some time with her. She always managed to cheer him up when he was down.

"Hi." He replied, and reached his hand out, for her to take. She stood there for a second, before gently placing it in his. He shot her a soft smile, and pulled her closer, sitting her next to himself, their hands still locked, "I've missed you." he told her.

She got a small smile on her face as well, "You have?" she wanted to know.

He nodded, "Yeah." He said, "Sorry I've been such a jerk. It doesn't have anything to do with you. I've been that way towards everyone. I'm sorry, it's not fair to you."

"To everyone?" Gabriella questioned, arching one eyebrow slightly. She almost never questioned what he said or what he did, so if she did, it was usually something she had been thinking a lot about, "What about Sharpay? She's been at your house a lot, right?"

"Well, everyone besides Sharpay." Troy replied, and stroked his thumb across the back of her hand, "Don't think more about it Gab. She was just… there for me. She kinda understood me better than anyone else. Don't take it personally."

"How can I not take it personally?" Gabriella wanted to know, but she didn't sound mad, which made Troy feel better. She was probably just a bit confused about it all, "I mean.. my boyfriend will listen to the school's bitch and not me? How can't I take that personally?"

"I'll listen to you." Troy reassured her, with a chuckle, but then added, "And Sharpay is not really a bitch. She's actually very nice."

Gabriella giggled lightly, but decided not to comment on that. She wouldn't believe that. Sharpay not being a bitch? Sure, they went to see Troy together, but that was a total lapse in judgement from her side. Sharpay could never be nice; she'd been mean since Gabriella arrived here at East High.

Troy didn't speak either. He pulled her closer, letting her rest her head on his shoulder, an arm around her. He let out a content sigh, and they sat there for awhile, just enjoying each others company. It was very nice to be relaxed with her.

She pulled back, and placed a small kiss on his lips, "I've actually missed you too, Troy. It's been so hard around here. I'm really glad you're back."

"Yeah," Troy said, as he nodded his head lightly, "yeah, I'm glad too. It was hard being stuck at home."

"I can imagine." Gabriella smiled, and leaned in to kiss him again. Though this time, he kept her there, wanting more than just a peck. He could feel her smile against his lips, but he didn't let go. He was enjoying this supposed-to-be chaste kiss way too much to let her move away. He trailed her bottom lip with his tongue, and it didn't take her too long to grand him permission to enter her mouth.

Gabriella had always been a shy girl, but she wasn't like that when they were alone. He could kiss her if he wanted to, though it had taken him time to get to that part with her. But it was worth it, because she had such soft lips, and they always tasted so nicely of strawberry from her lipgloss.

She eventually pulled back, and rested her forehead against his. They were both breathing hard, but also smiling. He traced her bottom lip with his index finger, love shining through is porcelain eyes.

"You're so beautiful." he told her, giving her a quick peck, "We ought to do this soon again. We need to spend more time together."

"And now," she said, still breathing pretty hard, "now when everything is settled more at your place, we'll probably have the time, right?"

"Yeah." He agreed, and broke away from her, to check his watch. The time was ticking, and he had to get home soon. His mom would probably have dinner ready in no time, "What do you say I drive you home, and I can pick you up tomorrow before school?"

"Yeah." She smiled, and stood up from the bench, quickly taking her school bag, which she had dropped off earlier when she arrived, "That sounds absolutely wonderful."

Troy stood up as well, and took a good hold of her hand, before they made their way down from the rooftop and towards his car. The events in the gymnasium earlier had completely slipped his mind.

--

When Troy finally arrived at his place, after dropping Gabriella off, he headed upstairs, kind of wanting to avoid everyone at the moment and get some more time to himself. However, one door to a room, made him stop.

It was the room that belonged to his parents. The one they used to sleep in. His mom wouldn't sleep in it anymore. That kind of tore Troy's heart more. Knowing that his mother was so upset about his father dying, that she couldn't even sleep in their room, she slept on the couch now. Troy would find her sometimes in the morning, tangled up in the sheets looking very awkward. Troy wanted to talk to her about it, but knew it wasn't the right time. It was way too soon. Troy would maybe try and talk to her in a few days. When she doesn't seem quite upset. Troy wanted to get what he was thinking, out of his head, at some point. And it seemed like the only person who would understand, was his mom. But like Troy said before, it was too soon.

Sighing, Troy walked away from the room, and headed into his room. He threw his backpack on the floor and plopped down on his bed, phone in hand. He flipped it open and noticed he had one text message from Sharpay. Curious, Troy opened it and read:

Hey, how r u doin? Hope everything is good for you. Ttyl.

Troy smiled. That was so nice of Sharpay to check up on him. He-

"Hey, when did you get home?" A voice interrupted his thoughts.

Troy looked up and his eyes landed on his uncle in the doorway. He suddenly became weary of him. Wondering if his uncle would act like he did at practice…

Troy shrugged, "A few minutes ago."

Robert rolled his eyes, "And you didn't bother to tell us you were here?"

Troy, confused, said, "Uh, I didn't think it was necessary…"

"Hm, well. Come on then. Let's go practice." Robert turned to leave.

This made Troy sit up; he had just come from practice! He didn't think he needed _more _practice.

"Practice? But we just had practice!"

His uncle came back into his room, looking angry, Troy was extremely wary of him now. Maybe he should have kept his mouth shut.

"Did you just talk back to me?"

"Uh…"

Robert shook his head at Troy. Troy didn't really like the look his uncle was giving him. He couldn't quite point out what emotion it was…it almost looked as if he was disgusted by something?

"God, okay. Just get to the court in less the five. Trust me, you need all the practice you can get. I don't know what's going on with you Troy but you aren't doing too good."

Troy couldn't believe what he was hearing. He thought he was doing good! But maybe his definition of 'good' wasn't Robert's definition of 'good'.

"Okay, I'll be there," Troy said, about to get up.

Robert nodded and left the room.

As soon as Troy made sure he was fully gone, he couldn't help but let out a groan. He wasn't in the mood to play basketball right now. He wanted some time alone but it seemed like that wasn't going to happen. He didn't want to upset his uncle so he grabbed his basketball and headed downstairs.

He walked out onto the court were his uncle stood, arms crossed, looking mad.

Troy gulped.

"Okay here's what I want you to do. I need you to run around the court five times. Then we'll practice your shots because they are horribly sloppy. Now I want these laps done under five minutes. If they aren't, I'll add more on. On the count of three: one, two, three. Go."

Troy stared in disbelief as his uncle pushed a button on his watch- meaning Troy had no choice but to start. However, Troy didn't know how he was going to be able to do all of that in five minutes. It was surely impossible. But seeing as he had no choice in the matter, he took off running.

"Come on Troy, you can run faster then that! Get moving! We haven't got all night you know!"

Troy's breathing was ragged as he tried to run faster. He couldn't be anymore happier when he finally made it to his fourth lap. That meant one to go.

"Five."

Troy stopped. _Five? What did that mean?_

"Four."

_Four? Huh? _

"Troy why did you stop! You have four seconds to complete this task! I suggest you keep running!"

_Four seconds?? Had five minutes already passed? Jeez. I'm screwed._

Troy kept running, even though he was just now on his fifth. Robert was still counting down. He just now hit one.

"Okay, I know for a fact you are not finished with your fifth lap. Buuut. Seeing as you need to be practicing more on your free throws, I'll cancel that. Now come over here and show me what you got."

Practice continued on like that for the next hour. Troy felt like he was going to pass out at any minute but didn't say anything. He knew that his uncle was only doing this to help him and Troy was grateful for that. Without his dad here he didn't know exactly how he was going to be able to keep up the basketball thing…

"Troy quit zoning out! If you keep going on like that I'm going to have to get tougher on you!"

Troy snapped out of the daze he was in and hastily apologized. The wind blew through his hair as he tried to get pass Robert so he could shoot. Robert however was quicker and managed to grab the basketball as he pushed Troy to the ground and made a shot.

Troy grunted and rubbed his shoulder. It was starting to hurt quite a bit from the fall.

"Troy you did that all wrong. G.d what am I going to do with you. Get your ass up and do it right."

Troy nearly groaned out loud but remained quiet. He got up and did as he was told.


	7. Something's Not Right

**What Do You Want From Me? **

**Chapter 7: Something's Not Right**

Troy yawned at threw his pillow over his head, to block out the annoying ringing from his alarm clock. He didn't want to get up. He didn't want to go to school. He was so worn out from all the work-out yesterday. He felt as if every limp on his body was aching. He didn't know what went on in his uncle's head, and after all that running, he wasn't sure if he wanted to find out. 

What if his uncle had like, lost his mind after Jack was dead? Would he take all his frustrations out on Troy, and make him work that much harder now? Troy did definitely not like that idea. He had a life too. He couldn't just spend all his spare time on basketball. What about homework, and what about his friends? What about Gabriella? Surely, she wanted some attention as well. 

He finally managed to get out of bed, and shot his alarm off. It was nice when the sound stopped. He checked his watch. Grr. He had to get ready. He threw on some clothes, tried to tame his hair, and threw his books into his book bag, before hurrying down the stairs. On his way into the kitchen, he stopped. He really didn't want to face his uncle right now. He peeked into the kitchen, and hoped to only find his mother in there. However, he was in no such luck, and what he saw really scared him. 

His mother was hugging his uncle, like, real tight. She was resting her head on his shoulder, and he was padding her hair, almost as if he was comforting her. Troy felt like gagging, and was glad that he hadn't had breakfast yet, otherwise it would probably had ended on the floor. 

What was that man up to? Did he want to have everything Troy's dad had before he died? What was his deal? Troy remembered how he used to really like his uncle, to look up to him, but right now – as from this moment – that was gone. He didn't know what was up, but he had to find out, because it was starting to creep him out.

They pulled apart in the kitchen. 

"I'm gonna go to school, and figure out a new plan for basketball." Robert said, and grabbed his lunch from the table, "Tell Troy I said 'hi'." 

Troy's mom nodded, as Robert turned to leave. Troy just managed to hide behind the door to the bathroom, before Robert entered the hallway. His uncle took on his jacket and his sneakers, and was out of there. 

Troy breathed a sigh of relief, and hurried out of his hiding spot, and towards the kitchen. He dashed in there, and took a seat, while mustering a smile, "Morning mom!" he cheered, and digged into some bread immediately. He actually had to hurry, if he wanted to get to school on time. 

"Morning, Troy." She smiled, and poured him some juice, "You just missed Robert, so you're gonna have to hurry. He took the car." 

Troy nodded, and stood up from his seat, bread in one hand, while he searched for some lunch in the fridge. His mother shook his head at him, and got it out for him, with a funny smile, "Thanks mom," he said, when she handed it to him, "you're the greatest." 

Lisa couldn't help but blush over the sweet words coming from her son's mouth, "You just say that so I'll continue making you lunch and breakfast." She teased. 

Troy couldn't help but chuckle, "Nah, you really are great mom." He promised her, just as he chewed the rest of his bread, and dawned his juice, "I really gotta yet mom, I'll be home later. I don't know if I'm hanging out with Gab after school, but I'll text you." 

Lisa grabbed his hand, which made him stop and turn around, "Troy…" she told him, as they locked eyes, "I really need to run something by you before you leave." 

Troy arched an eyebrow, but nodded slowly. Now he was worried. What the hell could be wrong? He hoped it wasn't serious. Maybe it was good news? Maybe she was about to tell him that Robert was moving into his own flat? It was about Goddamned time! "What?" he questioned her, eyes full with questions. 

Lisa swallowed hard, and Troy could tell she had some troubles forming her sentence – to get her thoughts into words, "I- I…" she paused, and took in a deep breath, "Remember how I mentioned we might not have that much money now, without your father's income?" 

Troy squeezed his eyes together, when he got an idea about where this might go, "Yeah…" he trailed off, urging her to go on. 

"Well," Lisa said, and sat down on the chair she had left two minutes ago, "we're already having problems. I know Robert is staying here, but he's not gonna be around forever. And your father's income was supposed to help you get into a good college, if you don't get a scholarship. I really think you need to get a job." 

Troy swallowed hard. He'd never thought he would need to get a job. But of course, college was expensive, "A job?" he questioned, as he thought it over in his head. Maybe it wouldn't be half bad? Maybe he could work with something really cool? "What did you have in mind, mom?" 

"I don't know." Lisa replied, shrugging. She was glad that he wasn't totally against the idea. She was just going to have to work a little on him, and they'd be fine, "You should start by asking around school if anyone knows anyone who needs help. Or else we can check the newspapers. We just need these money." 

Troy nodded, as his eyes flickered to the watch on the wall. He really had to get going. He stood up, and leaned forward to kiss his mother's cheek, "I'll see you later mom. I don't want to be late." 

"Bye honey." Lisa replied, as he hurried out of there, and ran down the street. She was glad she had such a good son. He had taken everything so well. Troy was just an amazing boy. She hoped he would still be this happy, when they fell into a new routine – a routine without Jack. 

--

When it was finally lunch, Troy was happy to sit down between Chad and Gabriella. He had just managed to get to homeroom before Ms. Darbus got there, and after that he'd rushed to get his stuff into his locker, and then to his next class, which meant he hadn't spoken to anyone of his friends yet. He had talked with Sharpay though, because they shared a class right before lunch on this day. 

They had Math. It was on the easiest level, because none of them were brainiacs like Gabriella and Taylor, who had to do homework with signs that he'd never get. But they had had fun, because their teacher had left half through the lesson, for a quick doctor's appointment, and no one had bothered to get them a temp for that. 

He had chatted a bit with Sharpay about everything, about his concerns for his mom, and about that whole job thing. She had listened to everything, and told him she might know someone who could get him a good job, which would give him a nice pay check. He hadn't told her about Robert and how he was acting weird, because he didn't want anyone to know. He figured he'd be able to stand up against him on his own – he was a big boy, he didn't need help. 

"Hey man, there you are!" Chad said, and gave him a pad on the shoulder, "I haven't seen you all day." 

Troy's eyes scanned over the cafeteria, in search for something pink, but Sharpay wasn't there yet, "No, I woke up late, had to rush through everything." 

"Point is, you made it, sweetie." Gabriella told him, and kissed his cheek lightly. 

He shot her a huge smile, and stroked the back of her hand. There was just something about being in Gabriella's presence that reassured him. She was so calm and nice, and everything felt good when they were together. She was the perfect girlfriend, and even if she wasn't the best listener for his problems (like a certain blonde-haired, pink-wearing girl), she was always there for him, even if she went on about a lot of other stuff instead. 

"So, what's up?" Chad questioned him, as he digged into his tuna sandwich. 

"Not much." Troy shrugged, and started eating his own lunch as well, "Talked to my mom this morning though, I have to get a job. I have to make some money for college or something." 

"Wow," Gabriella smiled, as she chewed happily on an apple, "that's something. Of course it's understandable that you guys have less money now. I might know someone who can help you. I can always ask my mom – her boss uses a lot of younger workers. They're cheaper, or whatever." 

"It's alright, thank you, though." Troy replied, genially happy for the offer, "But I already asked Sharpay for help. She knows a lot of people – no offence Gab – so I figured she might be able to get me into a place where I earn a lot. She even offered it herself. I couldn't say no, I wouldn't say no." 

Gabriella nodded, though she looked a bit disappointed. Troy didn't take much notice to this, though, because he figured she would. There had always been this thing between Gabriella and Sharpay – Gabriella had always been a bit jealous, and it was even worse now. 

Chad was oblivious to this though, so he snatched a fry from Gabriella's plate, and shot Troy a look, "Why this sudden buddy-buddy relationship with Sharpay, dude?" he questioned, eyes wide, 'fro bouncing, "You guys act like some old friends or something. What happened?"

Troy bit his lip, and shrugged, "I just…" he searched for the right words, before continuing, "…I just… talk to her, I guess. She understands me or something, I dunno. But she's sweet, you should all give her a chance." 

Gabriella didn't like the outcome of this conversation very much, so she quickly ate all her fries, and drank the rest of her water, "I'll be at the library." She told them, eyeing Troy in that certain way. He knew it was expected of him to go with her, so that was what he did. Honestly, it would be nice to have some alone time with her. 

"I'll go with you." he offered, and quickly stood up. Even if he wasn't done with his lunch, that smile on her face was worth it. He loved making her happy like that. Gabriella was worth everything, because she also made him happy.

--

Sharpay sighed happily and closed the piano carefully. It was so nice and calm to be at the school during this hours. No one were really there, so she could sit by the piano in peace and sing, and write and play – without any interruptions from the outside world. Of course the Science squad might be there somewhere along with a few other clubs, but they all had their own stuff to worry about, so they wouldn't disturb her. 

She checked her watch and decided that she really needed to get home, so she wouldn't miss dinner. Her mother would kill her if she wasn't there. She quickly stood up and brushed the back of her pink skirt off, before she grabbed her purse and was out of the music-room. 

She had to stop by her locker to grab a History book. She had to read something for the next day, so she'd have to be quick. She hurried down the hallway, heels clicking against the floor. It almost sounded like an echo in the empty hallway, and Sharpay felt, it was a bit spooky. 

She got to her locker and grabbed her book. She also found her iPod and was about to turn it on, when a loud outburst echoed through the hallway. Sharpay stopped in mid-move and held her breath, listening for another sound. She stood like that for almost a minute, before she could hear another one, coming from down the hall. 

She followed the sounds. She couldn't really make out what was being said, since she was still too far away, but she was getting nearer and could now make out a few words. As she got nearer and nearer, she realized that the yelling was coming from the gymnasium. 

The basketball team wasn't practising today was it? But… it sounded a lot like Robert. 

She placed her ear against the door, pressing it firmly to the wood, so she would be able to hear everything going on in there. Now, she usually wasn't nosy and _had _to know everything, even if she was the Queen of Gossip… But this just… it worried her. Robert worried her. And she was worried about Troy. She had to know what was going on in that family now, because something didn't seem right. 

"-fuck, Troy! You just gotta work harder! We can't have the team captain running like a girl!" Robert yelled, and Sharpay could clearly hear him through the closed door.

"But I'm worn out!" Troy breathed, and Sharpay had to press her ear even further to the door, to be able to make out what he was saying, "I'm so tired… It's been hard for me, Robert. I just need some time to let everything get okay again." 

"The championship waits for no one!" Robert roared, and Sharpay dared to push the door a bit open, so she could see what was going on. Robert was leaning over Troy, who was sitting on one of the benches, breathing heavily. 

"I'm sorry, but my father just died!" Troy defended himself, this time with a bit more strength in his voice. Sharpay could tell that this hadn't just happened now – it had been going on for some time. She could see Troy was tired of it. She could see he was about to give up on everything. She had no idea why Robert would do this to Troy. The boy's father just died, and his uncle, the guy who was supposed to be there for him, just kept pushing him like the death of his brother meant nothing. 

"It doesn't matter!" Robert said, voice steady and hard, "You're weak. Just like your father." And with those words Robert almost spit on Troy, before he turned to leave. 

Sharpay quickly left the door and hid behind a wall. She heard Robert leave the gym with angry footsteps. He brushed right past her, but didn't notice her, thanks to his rage. She breathed out a sigh of relief, and made sure he was totally gone, before she went for the gymnasium. She softly stepped inside, letting the door smack close behind her. 

Troy's back was turned to her, but it didn't keep him from speaking, "Look, if you're here to torture me more, forget it! I'm not gonna let you do this to me." he told her, because he thought she was Robert. He then turned around, and his eyes went wide when he realized she was Sharpay, and therefore not his uncle. 

"Troy?" she questioned, and took a small step closer to him, "I heard everything… Are you alright?" 

He didn't answer. He just stared at her, like he couldn't believe what he was seeing. Those blue eyes were wide with fear and realization. But he didn't move, he stood completely still.

"Troy?" she tried again.

Troy swallowed hard and turned to the bench. He grabbed his things and quickly ran past her and out of the gym, leaving her behind.

Sharpay had no idea what to do or say. What she had just witnessed was being comprehension. What could she do about it? Especially if Troy wouldn't admit to anyone what was wrong? She would have to talk to him, that was for certain.

* * *

Review? 

Xoxo,

Lilcutie0918 and Stessa 


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